Best of Friends
by Vagabond-Minded
Summary: When everyone turned their back on her, when no one wanted to be her friend, when they all wanted her for her fame, he was there the whole time. Harriette and Ron truly are the very best of friends. And they can never imagine a life without each other.
1. Chapter 1

Lost. She was completely, utterly, and horrifically lost. The tiny 11 year old girl ran from person to person, asking about this fabled Platform that her previous companion had never shed light upon. The ticket said 'Platform 9 ¾'. There had to be a mistake…

With a huff of horrid confusion, the girl ended up sitting down on a bench, trolley next to her and her new pet snowy owl giving a hoot of concern for her owner. The girl in turn carefully put her index finger through the bars on the cage and the owl nipped softly at her fingertips, giving affectionate chirps in response.

A shout from a woman took the girl out of her trance. "It's the same every year, packed with muggles, of course!"

"Muggles?" She jumped from the bench and peaked out from behind the stone pillar, watching the person who had said that. A family of bright red hair ran passed with separate trolleys.

"C'mon! Platform 9 and ¾ this way!" She grinned and quickly grabbed her trolley's handle, following the woman who led her family to the stone pillar that held separate signs for platforms 9 and 10.

"Percy, you first," The woman said. The boy with darker red hair that was a mess of curls stepped up towards the wall and with a confident stride, bolted for the bricks. She was expecting him to crash and hurt himself, but no. He passed straight through. How in the heck did the man passing by not notice a boy just disappearing?!

"Fred, you next," She turned to look at the twins who glared at the woman.

"He's not Fred, I am!"

"Honestly, woman, you call yourself our mother," She snorted as the woman gave an apology to the other boy, George. The one in question walked up and smirked.

"I'm only jokin', I am Fred." He bolted for the wall, George close behind so as their mother didn't smack them for good measure.

The raven haired girl stared at the wall with more confusion and pushed her round glasses up further on the bridge of her nose.

"Excuse me, ma'am…" The small chirp from her pet helped the woman hear her better. She turned, her arm securely around a little girl who kept quiet. "C-Could you tell me how to… Uhm…" She pointed at the wall, confused as to what to say.

"How to get onto the platform?" The woman began to laugh. "Not to worry, dear. It's Ron's first time to Hogwarts, as well!" Well, that made her feel a little bit better. "Now all you've got to do… Is walk straight at the wall between platforms 9 and 10. Best do it at a run, if you're nervous."

"Good luck," The little girl on her arm said. The raven haired girl smiled at the woman, bowing her head slightly as she did so. Positioning herself at the front of the wall was easy… Getting her feet to move was difficult. But with a mighty huff, she bolted forward and expected to hit something solid… But it felt as if she was passing through water and the whoosh reminded her of fall winds. It took her a minute to realize that she phased through a freaking brick wall before coming back down to reality.

Turning the corner of the wall, she saw a beautiful red and black train with a plate on the top that read Hogwarts Express. A grin broke out from her face. She did it. She had finally arrived. This was happening! She's a witch!

* * *

It was easy for her to find a compartment on her own. No one felt like sitting with the girl that wore boy's clothing. The train had finally left the station and she watched all the trees and beautiful scenery go by out of the window. A voice interrupted her daydream.

"Excuse me," It was the same tone she had used at the train station. Turning her head, she saw the exact same red headed boy in the doorway. "Do you mind? Everywhere else is full."

"On, not at all!" The girl gestured to the seat in front of her and the boy was ecstatic at being able to sit down.

"I'm Ron, by the way," She remembers his mother saying that. "Ron Weasley!"

"I'm Harriette. Harriette Potter." Apparently, that struck a chord with Ron.

He stared at Harriette as if she had just admitted to being a murderer. "So… So it's true. I mean, do you really have the- the-"

"The what?" She said, looking him down.

"The scar," He whispered as if he may have offended her. Harriette giggled.

"Oh, yeah," She moved her choppy bangs to show him the lightning bolt shape upon her forehead and Ron's face broke out into a grin.

"Wicked!" Harriette smiled and ruffled her bangs back into place.

A woman walked passed with a cart filled to the brim with food and Harriette grinned at the sight.

"Anything off the trolley, dears?"

"No, thanks. I'm all set." Ron in turn held up a saran wrapped sandwich that looked like it was put under a steam roller. Harriette frowned at this. Didn't seem fair if she didn't get something for him too. But her own compulsive behavior led to her shouting at the woman and reaching into her pocket to fish out a large amount of gold.

"We'll take the lot!"

 _Wait… did I just buy the whole cart?_ Harriette thought to herself. Her response was in definite when Ron and her began reaching for everything off the trolley. Yep. She bought the whole cart.


	2. Chapter 2

Harriette rifled through every single piece of chocolate she could get her hands on and ended up fighting for a piece of licorice with Ron and giggled when she won the tug of war, flopping back against the seat as she quickly chewed on the red roped candy.

After that was gone, she picked up a new box and split it open. The crackling of the pop candy could be heard inside and when she reached in for the edible rocks and very slowly chewed on some, she blew smoke out of her nose and giggled at the sensation.

Harriette quickly put the box down and heard audible squeaking. She looked down at Ron's lap and saw a big brown rat on his lap, his head in a box, snacking away. Harriette blindly reached for another box and looked at the front of it suspiciously.

"Bertie Bott's every flavored beans?" She asked Ron, opening it up and smelling the contents before raising her eyebrows once again, realizing that whatever was in the box, had no odor.

"They mean every flavor," Ron pulled on the orange roped candy with his teeth and continued to talk with his mouth full. "There's chocolate and peppermint, and there's also… Spinach, liver, and tripe!"

Harriette made a face of disgust. She remembers the taste of tripe; no stomach linings for her, thank you very much.

"George swears he got a bogey flavored one once!" Harriette carefully set the box down, realizing she wanted nothing to do with the contents of what was inside.

Harriette rifled through the pile before Ron picked up a blue box with gold writing on it. "Here, try this!"

'Chocolate Frogs' was written on the front in old English text. "Um… These aren't real frogs, are they?"

"It's just a spell," Ron said, wiping his mouth. "Besides, it's the cards you really want. Each pack's got a famous witch or wizard—got about five hundred myself."

Harriette ripped the tab holding the box closed off the top and slowly cracked it open. She was met with a live chocolate covered frog that croaked in her face as it leaped out of the box and onto the window.

"Watch it!" Ron said, staring as the frog crawled out of the window and jumping into the wind. Harriette huffed in annoyance, throwing her hands in the air as she turned her back on the window. "Ah, that's just rotten luck. They've only got about one good jump in them."

Harriette remembered that he said something about the card inside and she picked it up. Albus Dumbledore was written on the bottom and she grinned at the white bearded man in the hologram.

"Hey, I've got Dumbledore!" She said, moving the card back and forth.

"I got about six of him." Ron said like it was no big deal. Harriette glanced up at him and then back down at the card, seeing the hologram completely gone. It freaked her out.

"He's gone?" She asked, looking up.

"Well, you can't expect him to run around all day, can you?" Harriette shrugged and put the card down, her shoulders moving her large and baggy flannel shirt. Hearing the squeaking getting louder, Harriette looked at the rat that still had its head in a box.

"This is Scabbers, by the way… Pathetic, isn't he?" Harry giggled in response. "Oh, Fred gave me a spell to turn him yellow! Wanna see?"

Harriette nodded vigorously and leaned forward to watch this happen. Never truly seeing much of magic, this would be incredible.

Ron pulled his wand from his pocket and began clearing his throat. He raised the wand to tap the rat and began his spell when a girl with clean unmarked robes and bushy brown hair walked in the compartment, looking around.

"Has anyone seen a toad? A boy named Neville's lost one."

Harriette shook her head and Ron said no, still holding his wand up.

"Oh? Are you doing magic?" She smirked, waiting for him to continue. "Let's see, then!"

Ron cleared his throat once again and prepared to utter the most ridiculous spell ever voiced.

"Sunshine daisies, buttermellow… Turn this stupid fat rat yellow!" He slammed the wand down and a light came from the box, knocking it off the rat's head, who squeaked in disappointment and surprise.

Ron looked at Harriette and shrugged who also rolled her shoulders, disappointed that it didn't work.

The girl in the door snickered. "Are you sure that's a real spell? Well, it's not very good, is it?"

Ron looked at Harriette and gave her the most annoyed look that anyone could give another human being. Harriette did her best to keep her face neutral, but the grin was so obvious…

"Of course, I've only tried a few simple ones myself, but they've all worked for me." She waltzed in the compartment and removed the wand from within her robes. "For example," And shoved the friggin' wand in Harriette's face!

The girl in question suddenly went cold, staring down at the wand from her broken glasses.

"Occulus Repairo," There was a loud snapping sound and the tape from the nose bridge flew off, replaced with solid metal. Harriette took her glasses off to inspect what she had done and stared in disbelief. Her glasses were fixed! No more tape!

"That's better, isn't it?" Harriette nodded quickly. The girl gasped as she moved her bangs to put her glasses back on. "Holy Cricket… You're Harriette Potter!" Oh lord, here we go again…

"I'm Hermione Granger. And… you are?" Hermione looked at Ron, waiting for a response.

"Oh, Ron Weasley," He spoke through a mouthful of food.

"Pleasure," Yes, she totally is happy about meeting him. "You two best change into your robes. I expect we'll be arriving soon," Hermione rose from the seat and began to walk out but turned around to speak to Ron. "You've got dirt on your nose, by the way. Did you know? Just there," She touched a part of her nose and Ron rubbed his own at an attempt to remove the particles but failed.

Ron turned back to Harriette and huffed. "Wow, I knew there were stuck up people in Hogwarts but I never expected to meet one so soon!"

Harriette snickered, realizing that what he was saying was the truth in some way. They both stood up and reached above them for their robes. Ron's being a pair of black slacks and a white button up shirt matched with a black sweater and a robe, a tie that remained with the generic Hogwarts crest. They were to be changed later on to match their houses. Harriette's was the same except instead of black slacks, she received a dark gray knee length skirt. The tiny girl soon left the compartment to track down a lavatory. Once found, she was surrounded by girls who were also changing.

Blushing with pure embarrassment at how the girls in question looked more healthy and had a better shape than her bony body, she quickly turned to the corner, stepping out of her too big clothes and dropping them to the floor. She stood in fitted white panties and a white tank top, pulling the fitted button up white shirt over her shoulders and snapping the buttons into place.

After an angry fight with her shoes, Harriette finally got them off along with her holey socks and pulled on her new skirt and black socks that came just above her ankles. She put her new shoes on and her sweater, pulling on the robe provided and quickly leaving the bathroom to go back to her own compartment. Ron was already there, fighting with his shoelaces. Harriette smirked and folded up her old clothes, shoving them in the bag she had and leaving them on the floor.

Ron looked at Harriette with a small sheepish grin. "I've um… never been good with laces," He admitted. Harriette quickly nodded in understanding and kneeled down, taking the laces of his shoes into her hands and quickly tying a double knot like she'd know how to for years, and she did. Handling the other shoe in the same quick like manner, she patted his ankle and stood up as the train soon came lurching to a stop. Everyone was told to leave their stuff behind, house elves would take care of it all.

Harriette and Ron jumped off the train together and heard a familiar voice. Harriette turned to see Hagrid holding a lantern and calling out for first years.

"Hello, there, Harry!" He said, smiling down at the girl who smiled up at the giant. "Hey'a, Hagrid!"

Ron gawked at the man. "Whoa…"

"Right then! This way to the boats, first years, c'mon now! Follow me!" Harriette continued behind Hagrid, happy to see a familiar face at the school. They continued down the tracks to a dock where they were told to have 4 to a boat. Harriette and Ron rode together with two other boys, Ron holding the lantern.

The boats began to sail themselves as Hagrid led them through the foggy water. Harriette, out of curiosity, stuck her hand in the water, only to have something inside try and snap at her fingertips. The angry creature bared its teeth and swam away, making Harriette put both hands back into the boat and closer to the lantern stick for good measure. When the fog cleared over the murky lake, they saw it.

Hogwarts…

"It looks just like a castle…" Harriette whispered, staring at it.

"Blimey, mate, that is a castle." Ron nudged the girl with his elbow slightly and she grinned from ear to ear. This is it. Her new home; this is where she belonged.


	3. Chapter 3

The staircases felt like they were going on forever. Everyone seemed out of breath but due to the rigorous chores that Harriette's family makes her do, it was practically nothing to her.

Ron grabbed his heart in his chest and gasped. "With all this magic… couldn't have bewitched the staircase?" He breathed between pants. Harriette snorted.

"Maybe it's a trial. The ones that make it up the stairs are the ones that continue on,"

"Well, looks like I can't make it!"

Harriette laughed but grabbed his arm, pulling him along the rest of the way. When they reached the final staircase, they were met with a stone faced elder woman wearing green robes and a pointy green hat. And Harriette swore she heard a violin choir just by looking at this woman…

"Welcome to Hogwarts!" She calls over the first years. "Now, in a few moments, you will pass through these doors and join your classmates, but before you can take your seats, you must be sorted into your houses," The woman began. "They are Gryffnidor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Now while you're here… Your house will be like your family. Your triumphs will earn you points—any rule breaking, and you will lose points. And at the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup—"

"TREVOR!" Harriette nearly jumped out of her skin as a boy pushed her out of the way to pick up a toad at the elder woman's feet. How in the heck did the toad get there?! "Sorry," He said quietly and stepped back and away from her.

"The Sorting Ceremony will begin momentarily." And with that the woman walked away. She wasn't even gone for more than 10 seconds before someone else shouted.

"It's true, then!" Harriette turned her head to see who was speaking and it turns out, they were speaking directly to her. A blond boy, a few inches taller than her, with gunmetal blue eyes began to speak to her. "What they're saying on the train… Harriette Potter has come to Hogwarts."

Everybody began whispering about her, saying her name. She winced internally, wishing she wasn't known for something so depressing as what Hagrid told her she was known for.

"This is Crabbe, and Goyle," The boy gestured to the heavyset blokes behind him as he stepped forward. "And I'm Malfoy; Draco Malfoy," Harriette actually found the Draco part to be quite interesting. But the Malfoy part was just plain ridiculous. Ron seemed to agree, for he snorted at his name. Draco stared him down with a death glare that could freeze a fire.

"Think my name's funny, do ya? There's no need to ask for yours!" He spat. "Red hair, and a hand-me-down robe; must be a Weasley!" This didn't sit well with Harriette at all. As far as she was concerned, Ron was her friend. And she will not have someone insulting her friends.

"You'll soon find out that some wizarding families are better than others, Potter. You don't want to go making friends with the wrong sort," He glared at Weasley. "I can help you there."

Harriette stared down at his hand and realized something. If all better wizarding families are like him, she wants nothing to do with them. "I think I can tell the wrong sort for myself, thank you." Malfoy slowly put his hand down in defeat as the old woman returned and tapped on his shoulder with a rolled up piece of parchment.

"We're ready for you. Follow me." The double doors swung open and Harriette was met with hundreds of people staring at her and all of the first years. She quickly picked up the pace, hoping to get this done and over with as fast as humanly possible.

The old woman approached the stairs at the front of the huge dining hall and waved the parchment in front of the stairs, asking the students to wait there.

"Now, before we begin, Professor Dumbledore would like to say a few words," Harriette looked towards the man that was on her card from earlier and waited for him to speak up.

"I have a few start of term notices that I'd wish to announce. The first years, please note, that the dark forest is strictly forbidden to all students. Also, our caretaker, Mr. Filch has asked me to remind you that the third floor corridor on the right hand side is out of bounds to all those who do not wish to die a most painful death."

All students looked down solemn and understood what he was saying while Harriett stares in complete confusion, making a face that clearly reads, _'What kind of bloody school is this?!'_

Professor Dumbledore sat down in his throne like chair as the old woman unraveled the parchment.

"When I call your name, you will come forth. I shall place the sorting hat on your head, and you will be sorted into your houses." She lifted an old dusty hat off the stool and called out the first name.

"Hermione Granger!" Harriette's eyes immediately went up to see what was about to happen. It seemed as if Hermione was talking to herself as she took her seat and the hat was placed on her head.

"Mental, that one. I'm tellin' ya," Ron whispered to Harriette who seemed to half-heartedly agree with his statement.

Harriette jumped when the hat began to speak. "Hm, right then… Okay… Gryffindor!" It shouted and pride washed over her face as she jumped from the stool and headed for the Gryffindor's table.

"Draco Malfoy!" The blond walked straight for the stool and before the hat came close to his head, it shouted, "Slytherin!" Malfoy smirked and waltzed to the table full of snake crested students.

"Every wizard who ever went bad was a Slytherin!" Ron whispered to Harriette again and she looked over at the table with huge suspicions.

"Susan Bones!" A girl with long red hair approached the stool and Harriette turned her head to look at someone who seemed to be watching her the whole entire time. When she made eye contact with the man, she felt a flaming sensation in her scar. The man with long black hair and a crooked nose stared her down as if she was a mass murderer. Harriette's hand went to her scar and she winced, rubbing the tender place on her forehead.

"Harry? What's wrong?" Staring at the man still, Harriette slowly put her hand down, saying she was fine.

The hat shouted Hufflepuff for the said Susan. "Ronald Weasley!"

Ron seemed shocked as to hear his name at all. Or maybe he believed that the hat would place him in a house that wasn't with his family, like Hufflepuff, or Ravenclaw. As slow as humanly possible, he walked towards the stool and sat down. The hat was placed on his head and it laughed.

"Ha!" Ron jumped. "Another Weasley. I know just what to do with you… Gryffindor!" Ron released a sigh of complete and utter relief as the hat was removed from his head and he ran towards the Gryffindor table to be with his family.

"Harriette Potter." Every muscle in her body tensed as the whole dining hall got stone silent. People began to whisper again and the color drained from her face as everyone spoke her name. Her emerald green eyes soon found that she was moving at a snail's pace towards the stool and without realizing, her knee bumped into it, nearly making it topple over.

Harriette reached out to catch the stool and quickly sat down, blushing with pure embarrassment.

The sorting hat was put on her head and there was a slow response from it this time…

"Hm, difficult, very difficult… Plenty of courage, I see… Not a bad mind either, there's talent, yes… And a first to prove yourself… but where to put you?"

 _Oh no… What if it says Slytherin?!_ Harriette thought out of fear. And she began to whisper over and over again "Not Slytherin, not Slytherin…"

"Not Slytherin, eh? Are you sure; you could be great, you know! It's all here, in your head… And Slytherin can help you on the way to greatness! There's no doubt about that!" Harriette shook her head in fear, her hands scratching at her skirt and fingers twitching.

"No, please, no,"

"No? Well, if you're sure… Better be… Gryffindor!" The hat shouted. Everyone erupted in applause as Harriette smiled with happiness and relief. The hat was removed from her head and she quickly ran to sit next to Ron who patted her on the shoulder. Harriette turned her head to see that Dumbledore was full clapping with a smile on his face and raised his golden goblet as to congratulate her. Harriette smiled back and took her seat.

"Knew you'd make it," Hermione said, reaching for Harriette's hand from across the table. She smiled and bowed her head to the girl.

Everyone else soon was sorted into their respective houses and everyone began to break out into conversation. A glass at the front of the tables began to ring and Harriette ceased her conversation.

"Your attention, please," The old woman, Professor McGonagall, spoke up.

Professor Dumbledore rose from his seat. "Let the feast begin," With a wave of his hands, food in mass quantities appeared on the tables in front of them and Harriette stared in complete amazement. All this food and it's all for her? This was very different than what she was used to.

Almost immediately, Harriette dug her fork to the plate and shoveled bite after bite of mashed potatoes into her mouth and was aggressively eating a mass pile of stuffing from the huge turkey in front of her. Best food she's had in her whole entire life.

But objectively, she was not eating as fast and as much as Ron who had two different chicken legs in his hands, switching between the two bones and it made Harriette snort with laughter.

But there was something that was bugging Harriette ever since she sat down. Why did her forehead seem to burn when she made eye contact with that one man..?

Harriette reached across the table and tapped Percy's hand.

"Percy, um, who's that man talking to Professor Quirrell?" She gestured with her fork.

"Oh, that's Professor Snape, head of Slytherin house." Harriette looked at him upon further inspection and realized that should be somewhat obvious.

"What's he teach?"

"Potions. But everyone knows that it's the Dark Arts he fancies. He's been after Quirrell's job for years!" Harriette watched the man engage in idol conversation with the other man she met at Diagon Alley and was completely blindsided by the very mention of her name. The stuttering and seemingly confused man teaches the Dark Arts? Weird.

Harriette began to busy herself with her food again and just as she put her fork back into her dinner, a head phased through a plate on the table. "Hello!" Harriette squeaked in fear and dropped the fork in her hands. Ron in turn dropped the chicken leg he was reaching for and jumped back, nearly falling off the bench. The ghost turned to look at all the kids at the table and Harriette shuddered in complete fear.

"How are you? Welcome to Gryffindor!" Almost on cue, several ghosts entered the great hall, passing over students and phasing through tables.

"Hello, sir Nicholas. Have a nice summer?" Percy asked.

The ghost in response floated through the table and huffed. "Dismal. Once again, my request to join the headless hunt has been denied!" He floated away before Ron stopped him.

"Hey, I know you! You're nearly headless Nick!"

"I prefer Sir Nicholas, if you don't mind." The ghost said, scowling in frustration.

"Nearly headless?" Hermione said. "How can you be nearly headless?"

"Like this!" Sir Nicholas reached up for his hair and pulled his head free from his neck, having it hang on by a thin line of skin on his left side, exposing his innards. Ron screamed in fear as Harriette made a face of disgust. The ghost proceeded to float away.

After the feast had finished, the houses were told to follow their prefects to the dormitories.

Harriette and Ron quickly ran out of the Great Hall but stopped at the staircases, looking around with complete shock at the huge, and winding staircases that seemed to move sometimes. The paintings on the walls seemed to have life as they were speaking with one another. Harriette was mesmerized. Magic was incredible!

"This is the most direct path to the dormitories!" Percy, their prefect, shouted to Gryffindor first years. "Oh, and keep an eye on the staircases. They like to change."

Very slowly, they followed Percy up several flights of stairs and down a long, dark corridor to a portrait of an old, fat woman holding a handkerchief in her grasp. "Password," She said.

"Caput Draconis."

The painting separated from its frame and opened to a golden and red decorated room with bannisters and beautiful furniture. The warmth inside of the room radiated incredibly and Harriette immediately felt right at home. Percy told everyone to once again hurry and be quick and right behind him.

They stopped in front of a fireplace. "Welcome to the Gryffindor common room. Boys' dormitory upstairs and down to your left, girls', the same on your right. You'll find that all of your belongings have already been brought up."

Harriette looked around and then up at the chandelier above her head. The fire from the candles was real and yet, no wax. Bewitched, of course. Just like the ceiling in the Great Hall.

Harriette was assigned to a room upstairs but she didn't know anybody in the room. She was left to her own when the lights went out, sitting near the window in her only tank top and oversized pajama pants. At some point, she had let her pet owl, Hedwig, out of her cage to release her to the owlry at some point. Every so often, Harriette would stroke her feathers on her cheek and neck and then look out of the window.

As she stared out of the window, she felt something wet slide down her face and she reached up to wipe it away. Happy tears.

After years of living in a broom cupboard, she now has a place where she belongs.


	4. Chapter 4

"Is it this way?"

"No, the tower is that way."

"Has to be in this direction."

"That's the herbology hall."

"This way?"

"No! We're lost!"

And so they spent the next 10 minutes running around the huge halls of Hogwarts, trying to track down the Transfiguration classroom. After 11 minutes of searching, Harriette slammed hands first into the door that was marked 'Transfiguration' and stumbled through, dropping her books in the process. She quickly picked them up as Ron followed her in, breathing a breath of relief when McGonagall was nowhere to be found in the room. Nothing but a striped black and grey cat sitting on her desk.

"We made it!" Ron said to Harriette as she walked down the ramp to the front of the class where there were two empty seats. "Can you imagine the look on Old McGonagall's face if we were late?"

Harriette flinched as she saw the cat on the desk transfigured into a very disappointed looking professor McGonagall. "Something like that," Harriette said, pointing at the stone faced woman.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Ron complimented.

"Oh, thank you Mr. Weasley. But perhaps it would be more useful if I were to transfigure Ms. Potter and yourself into a pocket watch? That way, one of you might be on time!"

"W-We got lost, professor," Harriette said, biting her lip in shame.

"Then perhaps a map? But, I trust you don't need one to find your seats!" The two students stood there completely dumbfounded and slowly slunk into the seats at the very front of the classroom. Putting the books down on the desk, Harriette and Ron prepared for their introduction to Transfiguration.

* * *

Harriette peered into the giant cauldron next to her and backed up as her glasses fogged almost immediately. Hermione smacked her arm.

"Don't stick your face in the cauldron!"

"I'm not, I just want to know what's in it!" Harriette responded. Hermione stopped her from looking in the cauldron once again by pulling on her arm and forcing her into the seat. Harriette huffed in annoyance and removed her supplies from the floor and onto the table. Just as she opened the inkwell on the table, the door to the room slammed open and it made her nearly jump out of her skin.

"There will be no foolish wand waving, or silly incantations in this class," Severus Snape, scariest looking person known to this entire school, speed walked to the very front of the room.

"As such, I don't expect many of you to appreciate the subtle science and exact art that is potion-making, however for those select few… who possess the predisposition, I can teach you how to bewitch the mind and ensnare the senses. I can teach you to bottle fame, brew glory, and even put a stopper in death."

A tingle rushed down Harriette's spine as she jotted it all down in her notebook. She looked forward to learning such things that he spoke of. Potion could very well be one of her favorite classes. Science fascinated Harriette ever since she was a little girl—well, littler.

"Then again, maybe some of you have come to Hogwarts in possession of abilities so formidable, you feel confident enough… To not. Pay. Attention."

Harriette felt a nudge on her elbow and turned to Hermione who gestured for her to look up. She gulped in fear and put the quill down in her inkwell. Snape stared her down.

"Miss Potter… Our new celebrity…" Oh no, please don't… "Tell me, what would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" Harriette visibly flinched at the question. He expected her to know any of this?

Hermione's hand went up almost immediately and Harriette looked at her like she was crazy. He was trying to put her on the spot, he didn't honestly expect for Harriette to know the answers.

"I… I don't know," She bit her lip. And then came the onslaught of questions.

"You don't know? Let's try again, where, miss Potter, would you look if I asked you to find me a beazor?"

"I don't know, sir."

"And what, pray tell, is the difference between Monkshood and wolfsbane?"

"I don't know, sir." Harriette whimpered like a wounded animal and bowed her head down towards her book.

"Pity," Snape spat in reprimand. Why was he doing this to her? "Clearly… Fame isn't everything. Is it, Miss Potter?"

Harriette looked down at the page she was writing on. Very slowly, she closed the notebook and folded her hands together, too embarrassed to look up at anybody, specifically the potion master.

* * *

"It was pretty brutal how Snape just ripped into you like that, Harry," Ron said during study hour. Harriette shrugged and went back to writing things down but began to hear Seamus Finnigan start to chant something, swinging his wand at his goblet full of water.

" _Eye of rabbit, harp string hum, turn this water into rum."_

"What's Seamus trying to do to that glass of water?" Harriette asked Ron.

"Turn it to rum. He actually managed a weak tea earlier! Before—"

The loud explosion made Harriette leap in surprise and nearly fall out of her seat. She turned to see smoke billowing out of the glass and soot covering Seamus' face. Harriette snickered but covered her mouth.

A squawk could be heard from above her head and she looked up to see owls flying around.

"Mail's here!" Ron said. Things began to drop from the ceiling to others and Ron caught a rolled up piece of parchment and a letter. He set the parchment to the side to read the letter.

"Can I borrow this?" Harriette asked, seeing that it was a form of newspaper. Ron nodded and Harriette unrolled the parchment and was shocked at what was on the front of the paper.

"Hey, look!" Harriette looked up to see Neville Longbottom holding a clear sphere in his hands.

"Neville's got a rememberall!"

"I've read about those!" Hermione said. Harriette rolled her eyes. _Of course you have…_ "When the smoke turns red, it means you've forgotten something."

"Only problem is," Neville began. "I can't remember what I've forgotten."

Harriette continued to read the article before nudging Ron to get his attention. "Ron, someone broke into Gringotts," Harriette cleared her throat to read him the article. "'Believed to be the work of dark wizards or witches unknown, Gringotts goblins who were acknowledging the breach, insists nothing was taken. The vault in question, number 713, had, in fact, been emptied earlier that very same day—'" Harriette bit her lip and thought about it.

Of course! That's the vault that Hagrid took something out of when they went to Gringotts!

"Odd… I remember; that's the vault Hagrid and I went to…"

"Well, what was in the vault?" Ron asked. Harriette shrugged.

"I never found out."

Harriette's mind began to wander to the item in question… it looked like it was wrapped in Aunt Petunia's well used cheese cloth, tied together with a bow. There was a sound that it made; when you clink two rocks together to build a fire—the way she's seen those wilderness men do on those survival shows Dudley watches all the time.

Maybe it was some sort of stone… Who knows what Dumbledore really wants it for…


	5. Chapter 5

To say Harriette was nervous about this class was a gross understatement. She didn't even think flying on a broomstick was possible till she spotted the Nimbus 2000 in Diagon Alley. And even then, she had slim hopes for herself in the air like that. Though, she had a fairly good sense of balance.

When Harriette was younger, Uncle Vernon's brutally obese whale of a sister would bring her vicious bulldog when they came to visit and it would chase Harriette around the yard, trying to bite her. Harriette got very good at climbing trees after that, but eventually got bit by the ugly little beast.

"Is flying like climbing a tree?" Harriette said to Ron as they stood on the ground outside of the castle. Ron looked at Harriette with an odd look before responding.

"I guess… Balance, stability, you end up on a stick of wood at the end, sure, just like climbing a tree!" Ron nodded to give Harriette a sense of peace. She was grateful for his response but ultimately felt completely and utterly doomed.

Before she could inquire anymore, a woman who they all regarded as Madam Hooch walked up, holding her leather gloves and her spiked gray hair gently ruffling in the wind.

"Good afternoon, class!" She spoke.

"Good afternoon, Madam Hooch," They all spoke in unison while Hooch regarded specific persons in the class before turning on her heel and staring all the tiny first years down with her golden eyes.

"Welcome to your first flying lesson," Harriette clapped a little while she stood in her place. "Well, what are you waiting for? Everyone step up to the left side of their broomstick. C'mon now, hurry up!" Hooch spoke in harsh, quick tones, knowing that the only way the first years would listen if she bit hard and they followed through instantly.

They did, stepping up to their designated broomsticks. "Stick your right hand over the broom, and say 'up'."

"Up!" Shouts from various souls sounded in the crowd. But when Harriette shouted the word, her broomstick immediately zoomed into the palm of her hand and she jolted backwards a little, stumbling as the broomstick nearly overpowered her stance. Hermione stared at the girl with complete disbelief and slight annoyance. "Whoa…"

Everyone seemed to be incredibly annoyed, especially Ron and Hermione. Ron's would come up off the ground every once in a while but flop back down while Hermione's barely managed a hover.

"With feeling!" Hooch demanded.

" _Up!_ " Ron shouted. The broomstick went up, alright. Directly slamming into Ron's nose, knocking his head backwards and causing him to make a pained noise and hold his nose in agony.

Harriette couldn't help the audible snort that escaped her as Ron glared her down.

"Shut up, Harry." He snapped in anger, grabbing his broomstick in his right hand.

Harriette continued to grin as she spoke, "Are you okay?"

"Brilliant." He muttered under his breath, sniffling to make sure nothing on his nose was broken.

"Now," Madam Hooch walked down the path to speak directly to them all. "Once you've got hold of your broom, I want you to mount it. And grip it tight! You don't want to be sliding off the end,"

All the students swung one of their legs over the broomstick and carefully placed their feet on either side of the wooden handle. Harriette gripped her hands around the broom, worried that she would take off flying at any given moment.

"When I blow my whistle, I want each of you to kick off from the ground—hard! Keep your broom steady, hover for a moment… Then lean forward slightly, and touch back down."

Harriette was ready to go! "On my whistle: three, two," The whistle sounded and Harriette began to think she wasn't the most anxious in the class. Neville was immediately off the ground and nearly 4 feet in the air by the time everyone noticed what was happening.

"Mr. Longbottom," Hooch said his name over and over and his broom just got higher in the sky. And with one final call, he went zooming upward, nearly falling off his broom several times. "Come back down this instant!"

It was clear that Neville had no control of his broomstick. He slammed into the side of the school many times and the broom dove downward towards and lifted up at the very last second, zooming towards the crowd of students. Madam Hooch pointed her wand at him until she realized he really didn't have any control over his broom. Instead of hexing an innocent child, she dove out of the way, along with the rest of the students.

The broom took him upwards and if it wasn't for a statue with a spear, he would have never stopped. The spear of the statue snagged Neville's robe and he was left hanging in midair as the broom went flying, now without a rider, and skidding across the dirt, now lifeless.

"Help!" Neville yelled as his robe began to rip. Harriette watched from the ground, completely helpless in the situation. Madam Hooch was waiting for him to come back down.

His rope tore in two and he plummeted, catching onto the torch below with his ripped robe. The torch took his robe and left Neville to hit the concrete with a gut wrenching _SNAP!_

"Everyone, out of the way!" Madam Hooch made them all move and went to Neville to see if he was okay, or even alive.

Harriette looked at Ron when a wave of nausea washed over her, seeing Neville hit the ground like that. He had a broken wrist from the fall.

"Everyone is to keep their feet firmly on the ground while I take Mr. Longbottom to the hospital wing. If I see a single broom in the air… The one riding it will be out of Hogwarts before they can say, 'Quidditch'."

Harriette watched as Madam Hooch walked off with Neville, holding his wrist to keep him from getting even more hurt.

"Did you see the look on his face?" Harriette turned to look at, who else, the Malfoy prat himself. "Maybe if the fat lump had given this a squeeze, he would have remembered to fall on his fat arse,"

Harriette felt her blood broil when she saw Malfoy holding onto Neville's rememberall. And the words he said set her off. She marched forward, stern and angry look on her face as she pronounced her presence to him. "Give it here, Malfoy!"

Malfoy looked down at the girl and glared in her eyes. "No," He didn't miss a beat. "I think I'll leave it in a place for Longbottom to find," He tossed the sphere in the air and stepped onto the bristles of his broomstick and it slowly carried him into the air.

"How about on the roof?" Harriette glared at the boy who was now quite a ways away into the air. "What's the matter, Potter? A bit beyond your reach?"

No, absolutely not. She was not about to let a vile creature like him get the best of her because of some altitude. Harriette began to mount her broom, one leg on each side, her skirt laying painfully on the handle and restricting her movement.

"Harriette, don't you dare!" Hermione grabbed the girl's arm. "You heard what Madam Hooch said! Besides, you don't even know how to fly!"

The girl's words fell on deaf ears as Harriette darted in almost a beeline towards Malfoy, her eyes narrowed, seeing red as she loomed closer and closer to the blond menace with a cocky smirk on his face. He continued to toss the Rememberall in the air like it was nothing.

"Give it here, Malfoy! I'll knock you off your broom!" Harriette threatened, her hands firmly on the broomstick, scared of almost sliding off the end, just as Madam Hooch said.

"Is that so?" Malfoy grinned and was ready for Harriette as she dived towards him. Harriette missed the sphere and nearly fell off her broom as Malfoy dropped in the air, avoiding her almost effortlessly. Harriette turned to see him still holding the rememberall and grinning like a hyena.

"Have it your way." With a breath, he quickly chucked the sphere in the opposite direction, towards the towers. Harriette reacted completely on instinct. Her broom kicked into high gear as she leaned forward in just the right way to make it go lighting fast. Her hands gripped the handle as she spotted the orb in the sky, despite the glare of the sun from her glasses. Reaching her hands out, she felt the cool touch of the sphere in her hands as she dived to avoid colliding with a window, along with a tall tower in the sky.

Her entire body flipped over the broom handle and she quickly righted herself as to not fall off and plummet to the earth. Her eyes were wild with adrenaline rush as she slowly began to fly towards the crowd on the ground. All of her students cheered with happiness and excitement as she held up the rememberall, cheering for herself in a giddy, unmasked happiness that she hasn't felt in quite a long time. A feeling of accomplishment. The first to her was Ron, who was hugging her and patting her on the back, like a proud best friend would.

Hermione was next, already forgetting the words of discouragement she spoke to Harriette.

Among all the cheering happiness, Harriette nearly missed her name being called. "Harriette Potter!"

Her heart dropped into her stomach as she turned to see McGonagall standing there, a rolled up parchment in her hands. "Follow me," The woman spoke sternly and Harriette felt as if she had no choice but to do what her head of House is asking of her.

Harriette trailed behind McGonagall as they walked down the long, dark corridors that were illuminated with torches and they were in the direction of the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom. McGonagall stopped Harriette in her tracks, waving the parchment at her feet. "Wait here,"

Opening the door and not even regarding that the teacher was in the middle of a lesson, McGonagall interrupted the whole class.

"Professor Quirrell, excuse me, could I borrow Wood for a moment, please?"

The stuttering teacher could only agree, the large reptile in his hand being a confusing factor to Harriette to say the least.

A young man, probably in his fifth year, strutted out of the classroom. His soft facial features and charming smile made Harriette's eyes get wide and her knees get weak. No question, he was attractive. But also nearly 6 years older than her so Harriette dismissed her childish feelings.

"Potter, this is Oliver Wood," The boy grinned down at the little girl who held her broom in confusion. Why is she here?

"Wood, I have found you a seeker…" McGonagall said, smiling brightly at the boy and the girl who stared at the two of them in bitter confusion. Seeker? What is happening?


	6. Chapter 6

"Have you heard that Harriette Potter is the new Gryffindor Seeker? I always knew she'd do well!" Sir Nicholas spoke casually as he floated along with another fellow ghost resident.

The girl in question walked down the halls with her friend who was completely astonished with her good news. She was the happiest she had been in a very long time, and couldn't wait to tell her best friend.

"Seeker?" It's almost as if Ron couldn't believe what he was hearing. "But first years never make the house team… You must be the youngest Quidditch player in-"

"In a century!" Harriette finished in a cheery tone. "According to McGonagall."

"Hey, well done Harry! Wood's just told us!" The sudden hand on Harriette's shoulder nearly made her jump out of her skin as she turned to see Fred and George, beaming at the girl like she had just won the house cup for all of Gryffindor.

Harriette looked at Ron for an explanation. "Fred and George are on the team too; Beaters."

Beaters? "Our job is to make sure that _you_ don't get bloodied up too bad!" George said, smirking at the girl who was already starting to feel the nerves and fear of their words.

"Can't make any promises though. Rough game, Quidditch!" George continued, adding to the fear.

"But no one's died in years! Someone will vanish occasionally," Fred mocked.

"But they'll turn up in a month or two!"

Harriette immediately regretted her choice. Their words struck her to the core, the fear finally reaching her. Pride vanished and she suddenly wanted nothing more than to shrink away from all signs of Quidditch.

Ron noticed her uncomfortable gazes back and forth and how her stride went from forceful and giddy to nervous and stuttered shuffles, lagging behind him. He put a hand on her shoulder.

"Ah, go on, Harry! Quidditch is great! Best game there is! And you'll be great too," Ron did his best to lift her spirits but she stopped in her tracks to stare at the boy.

"But I've never even played Quidditch! What if I make a fool of myself?" She jabbed her finger in Ron's face for extra emphasis.

"You won't make a fool of yourself." Harriette jumped in fear and turned around to see Hermione standing there and smiling as usual. "It's in your blood." As always, Harriette was very confused with her assumption.

Out of frustration, Hermione led Harriette and Ron to a trophy case on the second floor and stopped in front of a particular case. Pointing to one particular badge, Harriette's thoughts completely left her mind as her bright green eyes stared at the badge that read " _Seeker, James Potter, 1970"_

"Whoa! Harry!" Ron nudged her with his elbow. "You never told me that your father was a seeker too!"

"I… I didn't know," Harriette slowly placed her hand upon the trophy case and gazed down at the legacy that her father had unknowingly left behind. A spark of hope lit inside of her heart and she almost felt tears come to her eyes. She had unknowingly followed in her father's footsteps, and it felt like she was a little bit closer to the people she's never truly known. All she knows of her family is what her aunt and uncle has told her, and aunt Petunia never spoke too highly of her mother.

Harriette was lost deep in thought when they were walking back to their dormitories. Reaching the staircases, Ron finally broke the silence.

"It's crazy, Hermione knows more about you than _you_ do!"

"Who doesn't?" Harriette said nonchalantly. But her chill was interrupted when the ground underneath them began to move. Nearly squeaking like a dog getting its tail stepped on, Harriette reached for the staircase railing as she watched the stairs move to a different corridor.

"What's happening?" Harriette shouted in fear to Hermione who would obviously know.

"The staircases change! Remember?" Hermione said, not anticipating the stairs moving but accepting it quicker than Harriette and Ron did. The redhead in question ended up stumbling backwards into Harriette who grunted as his elbow smashed into her arm, making it go limp.

The staircase came in contact with a new corridor and Hermione turned around.

"Let's go, before the staircase moves again!" Ron said, running up the staircase like a fire was on his tail and Harriette rubbed her arm, trying to regain feeling in it as Hermione coolly walked up with them, stepping down a dark corridor. Dust covered the greasy stone walls and cobwebs were wrapped around the pillars. A statue stood in front of the halls that was quite possibly the creepiest thing Harriette has ever bared witness to.

"Does anyone feel like… We shouldn't be here?" Harriette muttered, looking around the halls.

"We're not _supposed_ to be here. This is the 3rd floor; it's forbidden!" Hermione shouted in a whisper tone that sent chills down Harriette's spine.

Glancing between Hermione and Ron, she jumped nearly out of her skin when the dusty pillars lit on fire. Was every inanimate object in this school a sentient being?!

"L-Let's go-" The sound of a mrowling cat made Harriette jump and turn around to see the longhaired feline with bright red eyes.

"It's Filch's cat!" Hermione said.

"Run!" Harriette shouted, turning around and running down the long corridor that lit up with every step the three made on the concrete floors. Harriette could spy something down the dark corridor and turned to see if the other two were still following her.

"Quick, head for that door!" Nearly coming to a screeching halt, Harriette messed with a latch before slamming it in frustration, turning around to shout in frustration.

"It's locked!"

"That's it… We're done for-" Ron began but was cut off.

"Oh, move over!" Hermione shoved Harriette out of the way and pulled her wand out of her pocket, pointing it at the lock and shouting "Alohamora!"

The latch clicked immediately and Hermione pulled on the handle, opening the door. Harriette jumped in, followed by Ron who closed the door, staring at Hermione. "Alohamora?"

"Standard book of spells, chapter 7." Hermione snapped, clearly angry with his obliviousness. Harriette doubled over, her hands on her knees as she breathed out in fear and anxiousness.

 _Please don't find us, please don't find us, please don't find us…._

Harriette looked up to see the room that they were in and suddenly, she could care less if they got caught by Filch who had just left.

"Filch is gone," Hermione said, removing her ear from the door.

"Probably thinks this door is locked." Ron said.

"It was locked."

"And for good reason." Harriette said, her entire body stiff with fear and terror. And they all stopped in their tracks, mimicking Harriette's rigid muscles.

There on the floor was a huge, dark, three headed dog that was the size of a dragon! It was sleeping before they came in, but with all of the noise, the dog's heads all began to yawn and stir awake, only now realizing that someone else was in the room. Three heads, three bodies for the dog to rip to pieces.

And in the spirit of fear, Hermione, Harriette, and Ron screamed in terror as the dog's heads towered over them, growling at them, ready to pounce at any second. Harriette darted for the door first and pushed it open as the dog lurched forward and began snapping its huge jaws, all three, at the children. From the other side of the door, all three of them pushed on the wood, trying as hard as possible to snap the latch in place. After several terrifying minutes, they managed to get it closed and locked it again immediately, turning around and running as fast as possible.

Down the corridors to the Gryffindor common room, Harriette gasped with relief when she stood in the warmth of the room. The Fat Lady questioned why they were out after hours but stopped questioning when they uttered the password.

"What do they think they're doing?! Keeping a thing like that locked up in a school?" Ron shouted in anger.

"You don't use your eyes do you?" Hermione said. "Didn't you see what it was standing on?"

"I wasn't lookin' at its feet! I was a bit preoccupied with its heads! Or maybe you didn't notice!" Ron screamed in frustration. "There were three!"

Trudging up the stairs to the girl's dormitories, Hermione approached the door to the entrance of the dorms.

"It was standing on a trap door, which means it wasn't there by accident," She turned to direct her finger in their direction. "It's guarding something."

"Guarding something?" Harriette looked at Hermione and then at Ron.

"That's right. Now! If you two don't mind, I'm going to bed before either of you come up with another clever idea to get us all killed, or worse, _expelled!_ " Hermione opened the door and slammed it in their faces. Harriette jumped slightly.

"She needs to sort out her priorities." Ron shook his head in disappointment and Harriette couldn't help the snicker that escaped her mouth. She turned to Ron and breathed a deep sigh of relief.

"Well, I'm just happy we're still alive and not dog food," She muttered, rubbing her forehead in frustration. Ron slapped her on the back in a caring way.

"Takes a lot more than that to take down a Weasley!" Harriette rolled her eyes but felt a yawn creeping up from her throat and turned to look at the door.

"Guess I should go to bed too." She approached the door before Ron grabbed her arm and made her turn around.

"You alright, mate? I did kinda hit you back there," He smiled sheepishly and Harriette smiled back rubbing her inner arm.

"I'll be fine. Go to bed, all-unstoppable Weasley." She lightly punched him in the shoulder, not enough to hurt but enough to move him. She quickly turned and opened the door, closing it behind her, running up the stairs once again to get to her room.

All of her roommates were asleep right now, so she quietly walked to her bed and took off her uniform, laying it down back on the chair for tomorrow morning. She pulled on another oversized shirt of hers and crawled into bed, suddenly feeling a lot better about being safe in her oversized bed and not dead on the 3rd floor at the hands of a vicious three headed dog.

Nearly purring like a cat, she very quickly fell asleep in the warmth her large blanket provided. Tomorrow couldn't be any worse than today, right?


End file.
